Lint cotton cleaner



Nov. 17, 1959 A. L. VANDITIRGRIFF ETAL 2,912,720

LINT COTTON CLEANER 4 Sheets-Sheet 2 Filed May 13, 1957 INVENTOR.

Hm Wm ms rD WY E E mw N m R v.w m LM H rm AU United States Patent2,912,120 LIN'IIVCO'ITON CLEANER Arvel L. Vandergritf and Donald W. VanDoorn, Columbus, Ga., assignors to Lummus Cotton Gin Company,

a corporation of Georgia ..Application May 13, 1957, Serial No. 658,8697 Claims. (CI. 19-67) This invention relates to lint cotton cleaners ofthat class wherein a bat of lint. cotton isfed onto a combing An objectof our invention is to provide a lint cotton a cleaner of the characterdesignated in which the loss of fiber with the trash is greatlylessened.

' A more specific object of our invention is to provide, means toeliminate the formation of fringes or tufts of lint cotton which formalong the lower edge of the feed 1 plate in lint cotton cleaners of thetype to which this invention relates. Y Y Y .In the operation of lintcotton cleaners wherein a hat of lint-cotton is combed or drawn out overthe edge of a feed plate by a combing cylinder into a thin layer fromwhich trash and other foreign material is separated out and the cleanedlint carried away in a lint duct by a current of air, difficulties havebeen encountered due to the formation of fringes or tufts of lint alongthe lower edge of the feed plate. Foreign matter combed out of the lintfibers tends to reaccumulate in these fringes or tufts, thus loweringthe efiiciency of the machines. Also, asthese tufts accumulate and arepulled away by action of the combing cylinder, a stronger current of airis necessary to carry them into the lint duct. This stronger current ofair forces more trash and foreign matter into the lint duct, furtherreducing the efl'lciency of the machine.

. We have. discovered that the formation of the above described fringesand tufts may be eliminated by the provision of a deflector bar whichextends across the combing cylinder beneath the feed plate and which hasa thin edge extending upwardly between thelower end surface of the feedplate and the combing cylinder and which covers the surface of thecombing cylinder over the width of several teeth. We have also providedimproved means for the admission of air into the lint duct whereby theseparation of foreign material from the lint is not impaired and aminimum volume for air for conveying the lint is required. I

Apparatus embodying features of our invention is shown in theaccompanying drawings, forming a part of this application, in which; I

Fig. 1 is a front elevation with parts broken away;

Fig. 2 is a transverse sectional view;

I Fig. 3 is a partial sectional plan view drawn to a larger scale;

Fig. 4 is a partial transverse sectional view drawn to a larger scale;

I Fig. 5 is a detail sectional view showing means for adjusting thepartition at the entrance to the lint duct; and,

Fig. 6 is a sectional Fig. 5.

Referring to the drawings, we show a casing 10 in which is mounted acombing cylinderll. In the example plan view of the detail shown inshown, the combing cylinder is in the form of an imperforate cylinderwith spirally wound rows of saw teeth 13 mounted thereon. However,various forms of combing cylinders are known in the art and it will beapparent that other forms than the one here shown may be employed. Theteeth 13 on the combing cylinder are generally radially disposed, asshown in Fig. 4, for areason to be later described. A removable cover 14gives access to the combing cylinder.

Mounted in front of the combing cylinder 11 is a feed plate assembly 16which, in the example shown, is comprised of a multiplicity ofintermediate members 16a'and,

outer members 16b mounted in side by side relation so as to present asubstantially continuous surface as shown in Fig. 3 of, the drawing. Themembers 16a are pivoted intermediate their ends over a bar 17 whichextends from end to end of the casing, it being mounted in brackets 18(only one of which'is shown) in the ends of the casing. The forward ends19 of the feed plate members 16a are connected to springs 21 the lowerends of which are connected to anchors 22 mounted on a channel-likebracket 23 secured at its ends to the casing. Downward movement of theforward ends 19 is limited by means of adjusting bolts 24 which carryabutments 26 on their lower ends adapted to bear against the brackets23. II

Mounted in the casing over the feed plate assembly just described is alint slide 27. Mounted on the outermost feed plate members 1612 (onlyone being shown) is a guide plate 29 which directs a hat of lint beingfed into the machine under a fluted roller 31 mounted directly over thefeed plate assembly 16. The setting of the springs 21 determines therelation of the feed plate assembly to the feed roller 31 whilepermitting any one of the feed plate members to move downwardlyresponsive to a wad of cotton or a hard object coming between the feedroller and that feed plate member. Lint cotton to be cleaned is fed intothe forward upper part of the casing 10 by means of a pair of feedrollers 32.

As will be seen from a consideration of Figs. 2 and 4, the ends of thefeed plate members 16a and 16b adjacent the combing cylinder 11 are ofconsiderable relative thickness. Each is provided with an upwardlydished upper surface 33 near its terminus adjacent the combing cylinder11. The end of each member adjacent the combing cylinder is curvedoppositely to the curvature of the combing cylinder 11 whereby the endsurface approaches and then recedes away from the teeth 13 of thecombing cylinder, as shown at 34. This surface is next curved at asharper radius as shown at 36 to merge with the underside of the feedplate member.

Mounted below the feed plate assembly and extending axially across thecasing 10 adjacent the combing cylinder 11 is a deflector member 37. Thedeflector member 37 is provided'with relatively thin upper and loweredges 38 and 39 and is curved about the surface of the combing cylinder11,closely adjacent thereto, for the distance of approximately 15, or,as shown. The deflector member 37 has a body portion 41-curved in crosssection underneath the feed plate assembly and is secured againstangular movement by means of cap screws 42 and 43 extending throughthe-ends of the casing into the deflector member.

In operation, the combing cylinder 11 rotates counterclockwise, asviewed in Figs. 2 and 4, and in its rotation creates a relativelymild'current of air. In order to prevent air from being drawn in aroundcombing cylinder below the feed plate assembly and baf-. fie member 37,we mount plates 44 in the ends of the casing, the plates having curvedflanges 45 thereon which extend for a short distance over the ends ofthe cylinder 11 and parallel thereto.

The space in the casing below the feed plate assembly forms a trashreceiving chamber 46,'access, being bad the ends of the thereto by meansof a removable door 47. The rear of the trash chamber 46 is formed by agenerally upright partition member 48 which is fixedly mounted on a bar49 which extends from end to end of the casing. At the top of thepartition member 48 is mounted a curved plate 51 spaced from the combingcylinder 11 to form a passage 52 for the lint being carried around bythe combining cylinder. The bar 49 extends through the casing as shownin Fig. 6, and has an arm 53 mounted thereon and carrying on its outerend a spring pressed latch 54a which is adapted to engage selectively ina plurality of recesses 54 to adjust the position of the plate 51angularly with respect to the combing cylinder.

At the rear of the casing there is connected a lint duct 55 having anupper wall 56 which joins to a Wall 57 in the casing 10 at the rear ofthe combing cylinder 11. The lower wall 58 of the lint duct 55 extendsdownwardly and forwardly to a point below the rear end of the plate 51and is provided with an adjustable inlet 59 for the admission of air, itbeing understood that sub-atmospheric pressure is maintained within thelint duct 55. The quantity of air admitted through the inlet 59 may beregulated by means of a slide 61. The upper wall 57 of the lint ductextends inwardly to a point near the combing cylinder 11 and thencegenerally parallel to the combing cylinder to join the combing cylindercover 14.

In operation, the cottom is fed downwardly into the casing by the feedrollers 32 onto the lint slide 27 and thence downwardly under the flutedfeed roller 31 which rotates in a counterclockwise direction, as viewedin the drawings, to deliver the cotton over the nose of the feed plateassembly 16. Should a large Wad of cotton or a foreign object be in thelint the springs 21 permit the feed plate members to move downwardly.This downward movement is limited by the deflector member 37. The cottonpassing the feed plate assembly is there engaged by the combing cylinder11 and as the bat passes over the nose of the feed plate the fibers arealigned and foreign matter is loosened from the tangled fibers. Thefibers are carried by the combing cylinder past the deflector member 37and the teeth 13 of the combing cylinder being substantially radial, asthey pass the lower edge 39 of the deflector member, trash and otherforeign matter is released and thrown off by centrifugal force. Rotationof the combing cylinder 11 creates a gentle current of air which movesdownwardly close to the surface of the cylinder and over the plate 51through the passage 52. The action of the air current causes the fibersto be held in close proximity to the surface of the combing cylinder bythe air current. The fibers pass through the passage 52 into the lintduct 55 and are thrown off the combing cylinder 11 by centrifugal forceaided by air entering the lint duct through the passage 59.

The air inlet slot 59 being located behind the trash chamber wall 48,the conveying air does not interfere with the discharge of foreignmaterial into the trash chamber.

The provision of the deflector member 37, with its thin upper edgeprojecting into the space between the end of'the feed plate assembly andthe surface of the combing cylinder eliminates the space in whichfringes have normally formed in prior art apparatus. The lower edge ofthe deflector member 37 is also made thin and the bottom surface is sodesigned as to allow the air current to approach the moving surface ofthe combing cylinder 11 without turbulence. Since there is no turbulenceat the bottom edge of the deflector member this cause of fringeformation is eliminated. Also, the distance from the nose of the feedplate to the bottom of the deflector plate is sufliciently great for anystreamers of lint to be broken up before reaching the bottom edge of thefeed plate and this cause of fringe formation is eliminated.

With the fringe eliminated, the lint fibers are uniformly distributedover the surface of the combing cylinder and it is unnecessary for astrong current of air to enter the lint duct to prevent the loss of lintwith the foreign matter. This makes it possible to allow the conveyingair to enter through the air inlet slot 59 at the rear of the partition48 and only the air generated by the moving surface of the combingcylinder 11 enters the open end of the lint duct.

From the foregoing it will be apparent that we have devised an improvedlint cleaning apparatus which is simple of design and reliable inoperation.

While we have shown our invention in but oneform, it will be obvious tothose skilled in the art that it is not so limited, but is susceptibleof various other changes and modifications without departing from thespirit thereof, and we desire, therefore, that only such limitationsshall be placed thereupon as are specifically set forth in the appendedclaims.

What we claim is:

1. In a lint cotton cleaner, a combing cylinder, a casing for thecombing cylinder having an inlet for cotton to a cleaned near the upperfront thereof, an outlet duct for cleaned cotton at the-rear having alower wall extending downwardly beneath the combing cylinder,-agenerally upright partition member extending across the casing beneaththe combing cylinder adjacent the inner end of the duct forming the rearwall of a trash chamber, a feed roller adjacent the forward downgoingside of the combing cylinder, a feed plate assembly cooperating with thefeed roller and having an upwardly curved upper surface adjacent thecombing cylinder, the surface facing the combing cylinder being curveddownwardly toward and then away from the combing cylinder for thedistance of several teeth on the said cylinder, a deflector membermounted beneath the feed plate and extending across the casing in frontof the said cylinder, one edge thereof extending upwardly between therear end of the feed plate and the said cylinder, said deflector memberhaving a curved surface extending around the said cylinder relativelyclose thereto for a'considerable distance, and means to permit a currentof air to enter into the lint duct at the rear of the partition.

2. Apparatus as defined in claim 1 in which the feed plate is comprisedof a plurality of sections mounted side by side to form a substantiallycontinuous surface, and means resiliently urging the upper curvedsurfaces of the feed plate sections toward the feed roller.

3. Apparatus as defined in claim' 1 in which the combing cylinder isprovided with teeth which are substantially radial thereto whereby thelint and trash are drawn thereby past the feed plate and deflectormember and the trash is thrown off tangentially downward from thecombing cylinder, into the trash chamber, and the lint is thrown off bycentrifugal force into the lint duct and is carried away by the aircurrent.

4. In a lint cotton cleaner in which a hat of lint cotton is combed by acombing cylinder into a thin layer which loosens the trash therein andthe trash is then thrown off the combing cylinder and separated from thelint by centrifugal force and the lint enters a lint ductat the rear ofthe combing cylinder and is carried away by a current of air, theimprovement which comprises a spring pressed feed plate assembly havinga dished upper surface terminating adjacent the downgoing side of thecombing cylinder and having its ,surface facing the combing cylindercurved toward and then away from the combing cylinder, a feed rollercooperating Withthe upper surface of the feed plate, and a deflectormember mounted directly beneath the feed plate and extending downwardlyclosely adjacent the said cylinder for a distance of approximately 15,the upper edge of said deflector member extending upwardly between thelower portion of the feed plate assembly and the combing cylinder.

5. In a lint cotton cleaner ,in which a bat of lint cottoniscpmbedbyacombing cylinderinto. athinlayer which loosens the trash therein and thetrash is then thrown off the combing cylinder and separated from thelint by centrifugal force and the lint enters a lint duct and is carriedaway by a current of air, the improvement which comprises a casing inwhich the combing cylinder is mounted, a lint duct joined to the casingat the rear, a lower wall of the lint duct extending downwardly andterminating directly below the combing cylinder, an inlet for cotton atthe upper front of the casing, a partition member mounted below thecombing cylinder in spaced relation thereto adjacent the terminus of thelower wall of the lint duct and extending generally downward to thebottom of the casing to form the rear wall of a trash chamber in thelower front of the casing, a plate joined to the upper edge of thepartition member and extending across the casing in spaced relation tothe combing cylinder to form an entrance into the lint duct, means topermit an air stream to enter into the lint duct at the rear of thepartition member, and means to adjust the partition member angularlyrelative to the said cylinder.

6. In a lint cotton cleaner, a casing having an inlet for cotton to becleaned in the upper front portion thereof, a combing cylinder mountedin the casing, a dished feed plate assembly mounted closely adjacent thedowngoing side of the combing cylinder with its end facing the combingcylinder curved toward and then away from the combing cylinder, a feedroller cooperating with the upper surface of the feed plate assembly, adeflector member having relatively thin upper and lower edges mountedbeneath the feed plate in closely spaced relation to the combingcylinder and extending axially thereof and having its upper edgeextending upwardly between the combing cylinder and the end of the feedplate assembly facing the combing cylinder, a lint duct at the rear ofthe combing cylinder having one wall terminating under the combingcylinder, a partition member mounted adjacent the entrance to the lintduct in spaced relation to the combing cylinder and extending downwardlyto define a trash chamber in the lower front of the casing, and means topermit a current of air to enter into the lint duct at the rear of thepartition member.

7. In a lint cotton cleaner, a casing having an inlet for cotton to becleaned in the upper front portion thereof, a combing cylinder mountedin the casing, 21 dished feed plate assembly mounted closely adjacentthe downgoing side of the combing cylinder with its end facing thecombing cylinder curved toward and then away from the combing cylinder,a feed roller cooperating with the upper surface of the feed plate, adeflector plate having relatively thin upper and lower edges mountedbeneath the feed plate assembly and having its upper edge extendingupwardly between the combing cylinder and the end of the feed platefacing the combing cylinder and extending axially thereof, a lint ductat the rear of the combing cylinder having one wall terminating underthe combing cylinder, a partition member mounted adjacent the entranceto the lint duct in spaced rela- I tion to the combing cylinder andextending downwardly to define a trash chamber in the lower front of thecasing, a plate joined to the top of the partition member and extendingacross the casing rearwardly toward the entrance to the lint duct, meansto adjust the partition member angularly relative to the combingcylinder, and means to permit a current of air to enter into the casingat the rear of the partition into the lint duct.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS2,300,978 Sheppard Nov. 3, 1942 2,725,599 Schorsch et al.- Dec. 6, 19552,747,235 Wallace May 29, 1956 2,755,512 Moss July 24, 1956

